“We document four facts. First, investors generally expected ESG investments to underperform the market. Between mid-2021 and late-2023, the average expected 10-year annualized return of ESG investments relative to the overall stock market was −2.1%”

[COMMENTARY] I believe the reason many investors expect ESG-based investments to underperform is cultural, in that a certain amount of ‘crookedness’ is necessary to outperform financially. Am I wrong?
Four facts about ESG beliefs and investor portfolios, by Stefano Giglio, Matteo Maggiori, Johannes Stroebel, Zhenhao Tan, Stephen Utkus, and Xiao Xu. Journal of Financial Economics, Volume 164, February 2025, 103984.